The Adriatic coastline is by far Croatia’s most popular tourist region with around 11 million tourists each year.
The Adriatic Sea is a part of the Mediterranean Sea. It is positioned between the eastern coastline of Italy and the coastline of countries of the Balkan Peninsula (Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro and Albania).
The Adriatic coastline is by far Croatia’s most popular tourist region with around 11 million tourists each year. The coastline and the islands all make up a continuous Mediterranean tourist destination spanning from the smallest island village and hidden cove to a national park or urban coastal town. Crowned with 1,244 islands, islets, rocks and reefs, and characterised by cleanliness and clearness, the Croatian Adriatic can claim to be among the top sailing destinations in the world.
The chief ports of the Adriatic are Ancona, Bari, Brindisi and Venice in Italy and Dubrovnik, Rijeka and Split in Croatia and the sea is well served by regional ferries. The distance from Brindisi to Venice is 685 km (426 mi), while from Ancona to Split it is 228 km (142 mi). The sea is about 805 km (500 mi) in length, with an estimated area of 135,250 sq km (52,220 sq mi).
The clarity and transparency of the open sea reaches depths of 56 m whilst on the shore it is 5 m deep. The depth of the sea in the north (along the Istrian coast) is the shallowest at about 50 m, whilst at Palagruža (in the south) it reaches up to 250 m and around the most distant island of Jabuka it even reaches 1,300 m in depth. The average temperature of the sea surface in the summer months is between 22-27°C, whilst it is at its lowest in winter at around 7°C and in the spring it is a comfortable 18°C.
Source: Croatian National Tourist Board
